Celebrations for Somerset Business Awards 2019 winners
Released On 29th Oct 2019
THE winners of the 2019 Somerset Business Awards were announced on Friday, 25 October, at a glittering black-tie event at the Winter Gardens Pavilion, in Weston-super-Mare.
Nearly 400 business people from across Somerset attended the gala evening, which was organised by Somerset Chamber of Commerce and hosted by Somerset cricket legend Peter Trego.
The 2019 finalists came from all corners of the county, from Bridgwater, Taunton, Frome, Axbridge, Evercreech, Edington, Wheddon Cross and Wincanton, to Wellington, Sparkford, Shepton Mallet, Roadwater, Watchet, Weston-super-Mare, Yeovil, Glastonbury, Congresbury and Highbridge.
This year was the 15th anniversary of the awards and Somerset Chamber Chief Executive Stephen Henagulph thanked everyone who had entered: “I am extremely proud of our county’s businesses; we were all blown away by the quality of the entries and what Somerset’s businesses are achieving and producing.
“It was fantastic to be able to honour winners and finalists from all corners of the county and from a wide range of sectors and industries. Thank you to everyone who entered the awards and thank you to our judges and sponsors who continue to make these the biggest and best business awards in Somerset.”
It was the 10th year main sponsor Albert Goodman had supported the awards and Managing Partner Richard Bugler said it was an honour to be celebrating the very best businesses in Somerset.
“Businesses are the lifeblood of this county. There is a lot to be gloomy about at the moment, but despite all this the Somerset business community continues to do what it does best,” Mr Bugler said.
All the finalists were filmed by media students from Weston College who created short films about each business which were shown during the evening and will form part of the students’ studies.
The 2019 Somerset Business Awards winners from Yeovil were:
Best Use of Technology (sponsored by Porter Dodson):
Winner - Clear-flow Ltd, Yeovil
The runners-up were: Orbital Media, Taunton and Somerdale International Limited, Wellington
The Best Use of Technology Award recognises firms in the technology sector and beyond which are using the internet, cloud computing, robotics, apps or even AI to stand out in the market place. It was presented by Evelyn Adfield, of Porter Dodson.
The award was accepted by Luke Turner and Mark Marriott. Mr Turner said: “What an honour to be able to get this for the guys on the ground who work so hard and push things forward for all of us. Thank you for the team, thank you to everyone in Yeovil.”
Young Business Employee of the Year (sponsored by Clarks International):
Winner - Aimee-Jade Kingdon, Quedam Shopping Centre, Yeovil
Photo credit to: Tessa Chapman Photography.
The runners-up were: Melissa Houldsworth, Bridgwater & Taunton College, Bridgwater and Scott Bateman, Hippychick Ltd, Bridgwater
The Young Business Employee of the Year Award is presented to a young individual who has made a significant impact on their business. Going above and beyond the call of duty, the award nominations are put forward by their employer. It was presented by Lesley Robertson, Organisation Development Director, of Clarks International.
The award was accepted by Aimee-Jade Kingdon who said: “I wasn’t expecting this – thank you to James [Tovey] and the Quedam Centre for nominating me. I would also like to thank my parents for making me realise that you get out of life what you put in; you make your own successes.”
More information about the awards is available on the website: www.somersetbusinessawards.org.uk.
